5 MLB Pitchers Who Have Taken a Huge Step Back in 2017

After an encouraging rookie season that included a strong finish, Sean Manaea hasn't been as good during his sophomore campaign. Who else has struggled in 2017 despite being fresh off a solid year?

Baseball is a wonderful game, but it also has the tendency to rip your heart at the worst time imaginable (just ask Rich Hillabout that). A couple inches can be the difference between success and failure, so paying attention to the details is crucial. And just when it seems like a player is making some progress in a certain area, the baseball gods are right there to serve them a piece of humble pie.

That's what has happened to the following five pitchers -- all of them experienced some kind of success last year that they were likely hoping to build off of, but it hasn't exactly gone that way over the last few months. They can use the final weeks of the regular season to finish strong, but it'll be awfully hard to erase the tough times they've had to slog through up until this point.

How exactly did they go from having the warm and fuzzies last season to the complete opposite in 2017? Let's find out.